Tuesday, April 20, 2004
Sea Otter Circuit Race
Date: 4/17/04
Race: Sea Otter 30+ 4/5 Circuit Race
Field: 93
Distance: 50 minutes
Place: 17
Conditions: mid 50s and an increasing amount of wind
Teammates: none
The course consisted of a circuit of Laguna Seca raceway, 2.21mi.
From the start line, there is a quick left into a small climb (~160' judging by the course profile), gradual at first, then getting steeper near the top (about 8%?), complete with a false top to beat us into submission. After you crest the hill you shoot down the "corkscrew", a sharp-but-smooth downhill right followed by a sweeping left under a footbridge, where one's frail frame is buffeted by vicious crosswinds. After a sweeping right and sharp left, you're into a headwind over a small bump. Finally, there's the hairpin turn with about 1km to go, followed by two rights and the homestretch into the wind.
This race was nearly a disaster. I was warming up on the loop and lost track of the time. I rolled up to the line just as I heard "30+ 4/5s off on the whistle!" I just had time to get my jacket off and stuff it into my jersey when the whistle blew. Trouble was that I was still behind all riders from the next two races. I picked my way through them and then chased like hell up the hill. I saw Naomi and Ed watching as I came up the hill and thought, "Naomi probably thinks I couldn't click in again!" But mostly I was thinking, "aarghhh!" I flew down the corkscrew and finally latched on when the group let up a little because of the wind.
I spent the next few laps recovering, staying middlish in the pack and out of the wind. On what was probably the 4th time up the hill, I decided I'd better be near the front in case anything interesting happened. I worked my way up and was pleased to be able to hang with the front guys up the hill.
On the 5th time up, I was actually in the front few riders over the top, and realized we had a little bit of a gap coming down. But, as (I late figured out) happened on every lap, no one wanted to work into the wind, so it didn't look like anything would go away.
Some guy at the top of the hill kept yelling "bell lap! bell lap!" every time we came by, which was kinda funny at first, but got annoying when I was starting to wish it really was the bell lap. (Maybe he had a friend named Bell Lap? I'll have to check that one out...) Also, with all the cowbells people had near the finish, I decided to watch the official and listen to the announcer when we went passed the S/F line, just so there were no false finishes (see Early Bird Crit #1).
Anyway, back to the race. One rider, I think an AV, went away with a couple laps to go, but never got far out of sight. With all the wind, and the pack's acceleration on the final lap, he was destined to be caught. I don't know when we caught him, but we did. On the last time of the hill, someone asked "how many laps we got left?" Total silence. "Anybody
know?" Hey, I wasn't about to tell him! I figured that part of the race was knowing the situation. He asked one more time and someone told him curtly, "last lap."
I got a little gapped at the top of that last climb but was able to chase back on and even recover for a moment on the headwind-small-rise section. I got myself in a good position in the top 20 coming around the final corners. I thought everyone waited a pretty long time to start the sprint, the wind playing a part again. I might have jumped early just
for the heck of it but I got a little squeezed to the inside of one of the last turns. It felt like we all jumped at once, and I wasn't really behind anyone in particular, just going all out for the line. I knew a guy was close to me on the opposite side of the track, so I threw my bike at the line :) Probably looked pretty dumb, but what the heck. (I realized later that since they used timing-chips on our ankles, I should have thrown my left leg toward the line. Now that would have looked dumb!)
I'm not good at counting the riders in the pack, but I figured I was top-30. I was pleased when I found I was 17th.
The main thing I realized in looking back at this race was that I did not really have a strategy for trying to win once we got near the finish. I was watching and waiting, but overally I think I was just happy, and maybe a bit surprised, to be there. Next time I will have a plan and go for it!
Race: Sea Otter 30+ 4/5 Circuit Race
Field: 93
Distance: 50 minutes
Place: 17
Conditions: mid 50s and an increasing amount of wind
Teammates: none
The course consisted of a circuit of Laguna Seca raceway, 2.21mi.
From the start line, there is a quick left into a small climb (~160' judging by the course profile), gradual at first, then getting steeper near the top (about 8%?), complete with a false top to beat us into submission. After you crest the hill you shoot down the "corkscrew", a sharp-but-smooth downhill right followed by a sweeping left under a footbridge, where one's frail frame is buffeted by vicious crosswinds. After a sweeping right and sharp left, you're into a headwind over a small bump. Finally, there's the hairpin turn with about 1km to go, followed by two rights and the homestretch into the wind.
This race was nearly a disaster. I was warming up on the loop and lost track of the time. I rolled up to the line just as I heard "30+ 4/5s off on the whistle!" I just had time to get my jacket off and stuff it into my jersey when the whistle blew. Trouble was that I was still behind all riders from the next two races. I picked my way through them and then chased like hell up the hill. I saw Naomi and Ed watching as I came up the hill and thought, "Naomi probably thinks I couldn't click in again!" But mostly I was thinking, "aarghhh!" I flew down the corkscrew and finally latched on when the group let up a little because of the wind.
I spent the next few laps recovering, staying middlish in the pack and out of the wind. On what was probably the 4th time up the hill, I decided I'd better be near the front in case anything interesting happened. I worked my way up and was pleased to be able to hang with the front guys up the hill.
On the 5th time up, I was actually in the front few riders over the top, and realized we had a little bit of a gap coming down. But, as (I late figured out) happened on every lap, no one wanted to work into the wind, so it didn't look like anything would go away.
Some guy at the top of the hill kept yelling "bell lap! bell lap!" every time we came by, which was kinda funny at first, but got annoying when I was starting to wish it really was the bell lap. (Maybe he had a friend named Bell Lap? I'll have to check that one out...) Also, with all the cowbells people had near the finish, I decided to watch the official and listen to the announcer when we went passed the S/F line, just so there were no false finishes (see Early Bird Crit #1).
Anyway, back to the race. One rider, I think an AV, went away with a couple laps to go, but never got far out of sight. With all the wind, and the pack's acceleration on the final lap, he was destined to be caught. I don't know when we caught him, but we did. On the last time of the hill, someone asked "how many laps we got left?" Total silence. "Anybody
know?" Hey, I wasn't about to tell him! I figured that part of the race was knowing the situation. He asked one more time and someone told him curtly, "last lap."
I got a little gapped at the top of that last climb but was able to chase back on and even recover for a moment on the headwind-small-rise section. I got myself in a good position in the top 20 coming around the final corners. I thought everyone waited a pretty long time to start the sprint, the wind playing a part again. I might have jumped early just
for the heck of it but I got a little squeezed to the inside of one of the last turns. It felt like we all jumped at once, and I wasn't really behind anyone in particular, just going all out for the line. I knew a guy was close to me on the opposite side of the track, so I threw my bike at the line :) Probably looked pretty dumb, but what the heck. (I realized later that since they used timing-chips on our ankles, I should have thrown my left leg toward the line. Now that would have looked dumb!)
I'm not good at counting the riders in the pack, but I figured I was top-30. I was pleased when I found I was 17th.
The main thing I realized in looking back at this race was that I did not really have a strategy for trying to win once we got near the finish. I was watching and waiting, but overally I think I was just happy, and maybe a bit surprised, to be there. Next time I will have a plan and go for it!
Sea Otter Road Race
Date: 4/16/04
Race: Sea Otter 30+ 4/5 Road Race
Field: 130
Distance: 48 mi (4 laps)
Place: 44
Conditions: mid 50s and decent amount of wind
Teammates: Bob W., Mike H., Jason G.
I had been looking forward to this race since the winter. At that time I had planned to make it an A-priority race, but January-March didn't go as I'd hoped. So, I tempered my expectations. But I was determined to ride smart, and suffer as much as possible to stay with the lead group.
Rolling out of the raceway was a little sketchy, including some unnecessary hard braking, but I think we all survived. From pre-riding the course, I knew that I needed to be at the front to start the climb of Barloy Cyn ("The Wall"). To be there, I needed to be near the front of the 2-mile descent down Barloy Cyn from the track. That worked out well: I went up to the front 10 or so near the top of Barloy Cyn and stayed there all the way down, and didn't have to work too hard or worry about the 125-rider peloton behind me. Bob was also up there, leading the pack down the hill.
I hit the first climb as hard as I could without blowing up, and was comfortably mid-pack by the top. The first part of my plan was a success.
As usually happens, if you're not moving up, you're dropping back, so I soon found myself near the back of the down-sized peloton (some selection must have already been made on the first climb). The backstretch was an undulating couple km of climbing into a headwind on Watkins Gate, and I figured from my course pre-ride that this would be a good place to recover because the headwinds held back the climbers. However, I didn't count on the random braking while climbing, and at one point our group almost came to a full (& sudden) stop, and I actually touched someone's wheelbut managed to stay upright. The guy behind me stopped hard and then I think he dropped his chain. (Sorry, dude!)
The rest of the loop is pretty tame by comparison. There is a short power climb on Eucalyptus which I got over okay, and again was close to the front heading into Wall #2. This time I still felt okay, but was on the back by the top instead of the middle. The backstretch was still a good place to recover, but the accelerations out of the couple of turns were starting to hurt a little more. I tried to work my way back up to the front.
The third time on the Wall, the race blew apart. Probably 30-40 riders remained in the front group, and I was no longer one of them. I & a few others chased for a while but once we turned into the wind, we were toast. We suffered on for a while & caught a few others, and a few others caught up to us, including Bob, and the pace picked up into lap 4.
I started to feel better, and the last time up the power climb on Eucalytus, I attacked the grupetto and no one went with me. I recovered on the fast descent before heading up the final climb back to Laguna Seca.
The first 1/3 is not too steep, but it kicks up after that. It's like a not-as-steep version of Hicks (south). I had ridden the hill twice as a rehearsal, which really helped me to feel more comfortable; I knew where I was on the hill and what was ahead. I pulled a number of guys back. No one passed me, though one or two already ahead of me pulled away.
(Scott L. was at the top and cheered me over, which really helped me kick it over the top.)
A quick descent onto the track and around a hairpin, and I noticed two guys ahead with the same color race #'s as me, so I gave chase, passed one, and jumped on the other's wheel. After a few ticks he noticed me, and he started swerving to trying to lose me. I thought I might as well practice a sprint, so I tried to hang on and make him go first. He went, and I jumped on, but I couldn't quite come around him. He was a little wild in his sprint--either by design or otherwise-- which made me hesitate once or twice, but I don't know if I could have caught him anyway. He nipped me at the line.
Given my lack of form at Pilarcitos (mental or physical, whichever it was), I consider this result a step back in the right direction.
Race: Sea Otter 30+ 4/5 Road Race
Field: 130
Distance: 48 mi (4 laps)
Place: 44
Conditions: mid 50s and decent amount of wind
Teammates: Bob W., Mike H., Jason G.
I had been looking forward to this race since the winter. At that time I had planned to make it an A-priority race, but January-March didn't go as I'd hoped. So, I tempered my expectations. But I was determined to ride smart, and suffer as much as possible to stay with the lead group.
Rolling out of the raceway was a little sketchy, including some unnecessary hard braking, but I think we all survived. From pre-riding the course, I knew that I needed to be at the front to start the climb of Barloy Cyn ("The Wall"). To be there, I needed to be near the front of the 2-mile descent down Barloy Cyn from the track. That worked out well: I went up to the front 10 or so near the top of Barloy Cyn and stayed there all the way down, and didn't have to work too hard or worry about the 125-rider peloton behind me. Bob was also up there, leading the pack down the hill.
I hit the first climb as hard as I could without blowing up, and was comfortably mid-pack by the top. The first part of my plan was a success.
As usually happens, if you're not moving up, you're dropping back, so I soon found myself near the back of the down-sized peloton (some selection must have already been made on the first climb). The backstretch was an undulating couple km of climbing into a headwind on Watkins Gate, and I figured from my course pre-ride that this would be a good place to recover because the headwinds held back the climbers. However, I didn't count on the random braking while climbing, and at one point our group almost came to a full (& sudden) stop, and I actually touched someone's wheelbut managed to stay upright. The guy behind me stopped hard and then I think he dropped his chain. (Sorry, dude!)
The rest of the loop is pretty tame by comparison. There is a short power climb on Eucalyptus which I got over okay, and again was close to the front heading into Wall #2. This time I still felt okay, but was on the back by the top instead of the middle. The backstretch was still a good place to recover, but the accelerations out of the couple of turns were starting to hurt a little more. I tried to work my way back up to the front.
The third time on the Wall, the race blew apart. Probably 30-40 riders remained in the front group, and I was no longer one of them. I & a few others chased for a while but once we turned into the wind, we were toast. We suffered on for a while & caught a few others, and a few others caught up to us, including Bob, and the pace picked up into lap 4.
I started to feel better, and the last time up the power climb on Eucalytus, I attacked the grupetto and no one went with me. I recovered on the fast descent before heading up the final climb back to Laguna Seca.
The first 1/3 is not too steep, but it kicks up after that. It's like a not-as-steep version of Hicks (south). I had ridden the hill twice as a rehearsal, which really helped me to feel more comfortable; I knew where I was on the hill and what was ahead. I pulled a number of guys back. No one passed me, though one or two already ahead of me pulled away.
(Scott L. was at the top and cheered me over, which really helped me kick it over the top.)
A quick descent onto the track and around a hairpin, and I noticed two guys ahead with the same color race #'s as me, so I gave chase, passed one, and jumped on the other's wheel. After a few ticks he noticed me, and he started swerving to trying to lose me. I thought I might as well practice a sprint, so I tried to hang on and make him go first. He went, and I jumped on, but I couldn't quite come around him. He was a little wild in his sprint--either by design or otherwise-- which made me hesitate once or twice, but I don't know if I could have caught him anyway. He nipped me at the line.
Given my lack of form at Pilarcitos (mental or physical, whichever it was), I consider this result a step back in the right direction.
Wednesday, April 07, 2004
Why I had a crappy race
As one would imagine, I have been doing a lot of thinking about why I had such a lousy weekend of racing at Pilarcitos. The field was good, that's true, but I think the number one factor is that I was afraid to suffer enough to do well. I haven't had enough rides lately where I had to really gut it out and push myself through the pain. On the ITT in particular, I hit a comfort level and I was crusing, working hard, but after a few minutes at the finish line I wasn't even breathing hard anymore.
So, it's clear to me I need to do some high-intensity workouts. Not just for the physiological benefits, but more so for the mental benefits, of remembering just how hard I can push and still survive.
I've had a couple of good workouts since that race. Last week I rode our club ITT course and beat my time from last October. I figure that's pretty good, given it wasn't a race situation this time. But even better was yesterday, when I went out and rode my 3 mi. TT, twice (once with the wind, once into it). I blew away my previous best, and the heart rate was nice and high, the legs hurt, but I went fast anyway. My times for the 3.15 mile flat course (Santa Teresa from Bailey to Miramonte, if ya wanna know), was 6:49 going out and 8:51 coming back. Averaged over 3 miles that comes to under 7:30, and my previous best was around 7:48. If I had ridden anywhere near that pace at Pilarcitos, I would have cut at least 45 seconds off my time, probably more.
So, the confidence is coming back. To bolster that for Sea Otter, which is a week from Friday, I'm planning to go out and ride the course, including the finishing hill, a few times this weekend.
So, it's clear to me I need to do some high-intensity workouts. Not just for the physiological benefits, but more so for the mental benefits, of remembering just how hard I can push and still survive.
I've had a couple of good workouts since that race. Last week I rode our club ITT course and beat my time from last October. I figure that's pretty good, given it wasn't a race situation this time. But even better was yesterday, when I went out and rode my 3 mi. TT, twice (once with the wind, once into it). I blew away my previous best, and the heart rate was nice and high, the legs hurt, but I went fast anyway. My times for the 3.15 mile flat course (Santa Teresa from Bailey to Miramonte, if ya wanna know), was 6:49 going out and 8:51 coming back. Averaged over 3 miles that comes to under 7:30, and my previous best was around 7:48. If I had ridden anywhere near that pace at Pilarcitos, I would have cut at least 45 seconds off my time, probably more.
So, the confidence is coming back. To bolster that for Sea Otter, which is a week from Friday, I'm planning to go out and ride the course, including the finishing hill, a few times this weekend.
